This invention is directed to a bearing assembly of the type which is equipped with a locking collar for mounting on a rotatable shaft. It is further directed to a bearing assembly in which the inner race of the bearing assembly is formed with slotted fingers which are bent against the shaft by a removable locking collar. Earlier bearing assemblies provided raised end portions on the slotted fingers of the inner race member which were engaged by a locking collar. An improved bearing assembly and locking collar utilized a locking collar formed with a larger inside diameter that is sized to fit over and engage the inner race member fingers and a smaller diameter which cooperates with the larger inside diameter to form a radial wall that engages the distal ends of the slotted fingers of the inner race member. This improved bearing assembly and locking collar is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,840,679, which is incorporated in this specification by reference for all purposes.
The conventional bearing assembly and locking collar have, in the past, been shipped to customers in an unassembled condition which resulted in the locking collar becoming separated from the bearing assembly and increased the possibility that the locking collar could be mislaid or lost. Also, during installation, the locking collar could rotate about its inner race member. Further, during installation, the locking collar could tilt, twist or move axially relative to its inner race member making installation more difficult and resulting in the locking collar becoming loose on the inner race member after it was originally tightened. Even in instances where the tilted locking collar remained tightened, increased vibration has occurred due to the out of balance mounting of the locking collar. Attempts have been made in the art to correct these problems by providing the bearing assembly and locking collar with protrusions, threads and resilient locking rings which hold the locking collar on to the inner race member during shipping and installation. These attempts, although successful in maintaining the locking ring on the inner race member during shipping and assembly have not solved the problem of the locking collar rotating relative to the inner race member or the locking collar tilting relative to the inner race member. Further, these complex and additional manufacturing steps and additional items have increased the complexity and thus the cost of the bearing assembly and locking ring.